Ok, so the other day I listed some tracks from the likes of Nina, Billie and Ella and today I thought I'd mention the new breed. So in no particular order here is a track or two from my favorite female singer songwriters. It was about 10 years ago that I first heard of Jill Scott. She was the female singer songwriter who wrote the female lyrics for some of the tracks on The Roots album Things Fall Apart. Erykah Badu sang them but then Jill got some recognition and released her first album Who Is Jill Scott? which had some amazing tracks such as Getting In The Way and and A Long Walk. To be honest I wasn't as impressed with her next two albums but she did some great collaborations with people such as 4Hero and now seems to be doing a lot of acting, playing the lead in The No.1 Ladies Detective Agency and still releasing the odd stand out track..
Erykah Badu was someone I was already listening to back then. Baduizm had tracks such as On and On and from the Baduizm Live album Call Tyrone and Mama's Gun was a very worthy follow up. She has since added quite an extensive catalogue and featured on tracks with a whole host of people such as UK's Omar and Guru's Jazzamatazz among others.
Next om my list is Leela James. Probably my favorite of hers is Good Time. Again, she has worked with loads of people such as Talib Kweli and Raheem De Vaughn and done some very credible covers.
Angie Stone is next. I had heard of her before Mahgany Soul but that was the first album of hers I really listened to and I got hooked. I still listen to Pissed Off a few times a week.
I liked India Arie's first album, espescially Always In My Head. Her second album seemed rushed out and pretty bland though.
Sade has a new album out. She gets stick for doing Coffee table music but I grew up listening to her and she can do very little wrong in my eyes. Her old stuff is classic and her new stuff is pretty cool too. King of Sorrow is just an example.
Candi Staton is one of those singers who in my eyes is up there with the very best. Not such a great fan of all of her stuff but who can argue with You Got The Love in all it's different versions. I read a review of her performance in Brighton this summer and she is still belting them out as good as ever in her 70's! Here's an interview she did for the Guardian this year.
Can't not mention Amy Winehouse on this and rumered to have a new album out soonish but her first two were pretty damn good in my opinion. Her troubles aside I think she is probably the best new young singer in the UK for a long time. This is my favorite from her first album, There Is No Greater Love.
Of course there are loads more new female artists, such as La Roux and Skream's Dubstep version of Going In For The Kill, Andreya Triana and one of her many bits of work with Bonobo - The Keeper, and even Adele. Like Corinne Bailey Rae, Adele gets a mixed reaction but I like them both. Adele has a vey powerful voice, like Beth Ditto, and for that reason I have included her here. This list is by no means definative and very much on the soulful side so feel free to recommend any others.
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